Tetrakis(4-sulfonatophenyl)porphyrin fluorescence as reporter of human serum albumin structural changes induced by guanidine hydrochloride

The interaction of the drug carrier protein human serum albumin (HSA) with the ionic, free base porphyrin tetrakis(4-sulfonatophenyl)porphyrin (TSPP) was investigated under chemical denaturation conditions using guanidine hydrochloride (Gdn-HCl) in aqueous solution at pH 7 and 2.5. Protein stability was studied by fluorescence spectroscopy using intrinsic tryptophan fluorescence, whereas far-UV circular dichroism gave information regarding conformational changes. Steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence as well as extinction and induced visible CD of TSPP were also monitored in the presence of the denaturant.The addition of 1.0 M Gdn-HCl inhibited the FRET process between the sole tryptophan residue of HSA and the porphyrin as inferred by an increase in the intrinsic fluorescence of the former together with a drop in the fluorescence of the latter. Simultaneously, an induced bisignate CD band was detected in the Soret region of TSPP extinction following the changes in the monomer ? aggregate equilibrium of TSPP. The features in the extinction spectra pointed to the formation of J-aggregates at pH = 2.5 and were confirmed by fluorescence lifetime measurements. At pH = 7, no TSPP dimers were detected in the absence of the protein or in the presence of native HSA. However, H-dimers or higher aggregates of TSPP associated to HSA were induced at concentrations of Gdn-HCl below 2 M.The main unfolding transition probed by HSA intrinsic fluorescence took place between 2 and 3 M Gdn-HCl at pH = 7, whereas at pH = 2.5 it was detected only above 2.8 M Gdn-HCl, coinciding with TSPP release into solution which occurs at high denaturant concentration for both pH studied. The results suggest that the chemical unfolding of HSA is a multistep process. The free base porphyrin contributes to an increase in the protein stability, particularly important under acidic conditions, where the protein is known to be in an expanded form in the absence of TSPP.The analysis of TSPP fluorescence fluctuations in the autocorrelation functions obtained using fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) in the presence of HSA at different denaturant concentrations showed that the porphyrin only interacts with the native form of the protein.Both fluorescence and circular dichroism data confirmed that in the noncovalent complex HSA–TSPP the free base porphyrin can act as a reporter of the protein structural changes induced either by pH or chemical denaturation.     

Molecular dynamics simulation on crystalline nucleation behaviour of a single chain touching a substrate surface II. Temperature dependence

Molecular dynamics simulation has been used in exploring the crystalline nucleation behaviour of a single chain touching a substrate surface at different temperatures. It shows that a polyethylene chain (980 CH₂) changed its overall shape from an isotropic coil to an oriented one nearly normal to the substrate surface of amorphous carbons at 200, 300, 400 and 500 K. Most repeats of the chain were getting ordered in a zigzag package for the first three temperatures, but not for the one at 500 K. It was found that the ordering rate was bothered by the substrate surface. The rate of forming the ordered package at 300 K is larger than that at 200 K and at 400 K, indicating the whole process simulated is nucleation dependent in nature.     

Product characterization of waste printed circuit board by pyrolysis

This paper is part of a project which studies pyrolysis as an alternative for recycling printed circuit board (PCB); the sample (2.0 cm × 2.0 cm) was pyrolyzed under nitrogen atmosphere, at 300, 400, 500, 600 and 700 °C in a tubular type oven, maintaining 30 min, and during the pyrolysis process the organic part is decomposed to pyro-oils and pyro-gases, which can be used as fuels or chemical material resources: the solid residues of about 75–80 wt.%, liquid yields of ∼9.0 wt.% and gas yields of 12–14 wt.%. No significant influence of temperature was observed over 500 °C, however, there was certainly influence under 500 °C in both volatile substance. The pyro-oils have fairly high gross calorific values (∼30 kJ/kg), mainly with aromatic and with oxygenated compounds. The pyro-gas is very rich in CO, CO₂, H₂, CH₄ and in small part of O₂; after being purged it can be combusted for the pyrolysis self-sustain. The tensile strength decreases about 35% at 773 K, while the impact and tear strength increases above 773 K, and then decreases along with the temperature increase. The strength changes can offer guidance for used as a replacement for virgin fibres in SMC manufacture. The residues are better laminated can be easily liberated for metals recovery.     

Fabrication and magnetic properties of electrospun copper ferrite (CuFe2O4) nanofibers

Tetragonal copper ferrite (CuFe₂O₄) nanofibers were fabricated by electrospinning method using a solution that contained poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP) and Cu and Fe nitrates as alternative metal sources. The as-spun and calcined CuFe₂O₄/PVP composite samples were characterized by TG-DTA, X-ray diffraction, FT-IR, and SEM, respectively. After calcination of the as-spun CuFe₂O₄/PVP composite nanofibers (fiber size of 89 ± 12 nm in diameter) at 500 °C in air for 2 h, CuFe₂O₄ nanofibers of 66 ± 13 nm in diameter having well-developed tetragonal structure were successfully obtained. The crystal structure and morphology of the nanofibers were influenced by the calcination temperature. After calcination at 600 and 700 °C, the nature of nanofibers changed which was possibly due to the reorganization of the CuFe₂O₄ structure at high temperature, and a fiber structure of packed particles or crystallites was prominent. Crystallite size of the nanoparticles contained in nanofibers increases from 7.9 to 23.98 nm with increasing calcination temperature between 500 and 700 °C. Room temperature magnetization results showed a ferromagnetic behavior of the calcined CuFe₂O₄ samples, having their specific saturation magnetization (M_s) values of 17.73, 20.52, and 23.98 emu/g for the samples calcined at 500, 600, and 700 °C, respectively.     

Nanospace geometry-sensitive molecular assembly

Interaction of a molecule with micropore walls strongly depends on the micropore width. Molecules confined in the micropore tend to form an intermolecular structure inherent to each molecule/pore system in order to lower the whole molecular energy. Supercritical NO is adsorbed in micropores of zolite or activated carbon fiber in the form of a dimer at 303 K. The NO dimerization varies with the micropore width. CCl₄ molecules only in pore of pore width =1.0 nm at 303 K form a plastic crystalline structure which is observed at 246–250 K in the bulk phase. H₂O molecules are associated with each other to form an ordered assembly in carbon micropores at 303 K; the smaller the pore width, the more ordered the assembly structure. The presence of preadsorbed H₂O noticeably enhances adsorption of supercritical CH₄ in carbon micropores at 303 K due to methane nanohydrate formation, which has an optimum pore width of 1 nm.     

Effects of calcination and activation temperature on dry reforming catalysts

The effect of calcination temperatures on dry reforming catalysts supported on high surface area alumina Ni/γ-Al₂O₃ (SA-6175) was studied experimentally. In this study, the prepared catalyst was tested in a micro tubular reactor using temperature ranges of 500, 600, 700 and 800 °C at atmospheric pressure, using a total flow rate of 33 ml/min consisting of 3 ml/min of N₂, 15 ml/min of CO₂ and 15 ml/min of CH₄. The calcination was carried out in the range of 500–900 °C. The catalyst is activated inside the reactor at 500–800 °C using hydrogen gas. It was observed that calcination enhances catalyst activity which increases as calcination and reaction temperatures were increased. The highest conversion was obtained at 800 °C reaction temperature by using catalyst calcined at 900 °C and activation at 700 °C. The catalyst characterization conducted supported the observed experimental results.     

Synthesis,structure and properties of Ag2PdO2

The first silver palladium oxide, Ag₂PdO₂, was synthesised from a co-precipitated oxide precursor by annealing at 423–823 K, applying an oxygen pressure of 73 MPa. The crystal structure has been determined from X-ray and neutron powder diffraction data. The new compound crystallises in space group Immm. The lattice constants as determined from X-ray powder diffraction are a=4.55523(5) Å, b=3.00803(3) Å and c=9.8977(1) Å. The crystal structure constitutes a new structure type showing some features in common with the Li₂CuO₂-type. Palladium is found in a nearly square planar arrangement while silver has an almost linear co-ordination. The overall structure can be considered as a rocksalt defect structure. Ag₂PdO₂ is diamagnetic and semiconducting. The band gap, estimated from conductivity measurements in the temperature range of 240–300 K, is 0.18(2) eV.     

The standard molar enthalpy of formation,molar heat capacities,and thermal stability of anhydrous caffeine

The constant-volume energy of combustion of crystalline anhydrous caffeine (C₈H₁₀N₄O₂) in α (lower temperature steady) crystal form was measured by a bomb combustion calorimeter, the standard molar enthalpy of combustion of caffeine at T = 298.15 K was determined to be −(4255.08 ± 4.30) kJ · mol⁻¹, and the standard molar enthalpy of formation was derived as −(322.15 ± 4.80) kJ · mol⁻¹. The heat capacity of caffeine in the same crystal form was measured in the temperature range from (80 to 387) K by an adiabatic calorimeter. No phase transition or thermal anomaly was observed in the above temperature range. The thermal behavior of the compound was further examined by thermogravimetry (TG), differential thermal analysis (DTA) over the range from (300 to 700) K and by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) over the range from (300 to 540) K, respectively. From the above thermal analysis a (solid–solid) and a (solid–liquid) phase transition of the compound were found at T = (413.39 and 509.00) K, respectively; and the corresponding molar enthalpies of these transitions were determined to be (3.43 ± 0.02) kJ · mol⁻¹for the (solid–solid) transition, and (19.86 ± 0.03) kJ · mol⁻¹ for the (solid–liquid) transition, respectively.     

Accurate heat capacity measurements on powdered samples using a Quantum Design physical property measurement system

We have evaluated the accuracy of the heat capacity option of a Quantum Design physical property measurement system (PPMS) by measuring the heat capacity of various types of conducting and insulating samples over the temperature range from (2 to 300) K. In particular, the accuracy of measurements on a copper pellet was determined to be ±2% for 2 K < T < 20 K and ±0.6% for 20 K < T < 300 K, however similar measurements on a powdered sample of benzoic acid had errors as high as 20%. A new method for heat capacity measurements of powdered samples using a PPMS system has been developed that allows us to obtain heat capacity measurements for both insulating and conducting powdered samples with an accuracy of ±1% from (20 to 300) K and ±2% to ±5% for T < 20 K. Since the heat capacity of substances (and corresponding entropy contribution) is small at low temperatures for lattice-only contributions, the accuracy of ±2% to ±5% below 20 K is considered acceptable. As a test of the new method, the heat capacity of powdered bulk hematite has been measured in the temperature range from (2 to 300) K with the PPMS, and its standard entropy at T = 298.15 K was calculated to be (87.33 and 87.27) J · K^?1 · mol^?1, which deviates ?0.08% and ?0.15% from the accepted reference value, respectively. We recommend that this new method become the standard for accurate heat capacity measurements on insulating powdered samples using a PPMS system and the corresponding thermodynamic calculations.     

In vivo monitoring of the distribution of a monoclonal antibody fragment

This study demonstrates the potential of in vivo, whole body fluorescence imaging for pharmacokinetic studies. The distribution of a novel human anti-tumour antibody fragment, NovoMab-G2-scFv, labelled with a fluorescent dye (Cy5.5.18) was monitored in vivo. The NovoMab-G2-scFv–Cy5 complex was injected via the tail vein into nude mice bearing subcutaneous human melanoma tumour cells. The distribution of fluorescence NovoMab-G2-scFv–Cy5 was imaged non-invasively using a charge-coupled device (CCD) camera. Whole body fluorescence images were acquired 2, 6, 12, 24, 48 and 72 h post-injection. Fluorescence was detected at the tumour site following injection of NovoMab-G2-scFv–Cy5 but not following injection of a labelled irrelevant antibody fragment, demonstrating specific binding of the antibody–dye complex to the tumour. Fluorescence from the tumour site peaked 2 h post-injection and gradually declined, reaching a minimum 72 h post-injection. Fitting an exponential decay to fluorescence data extracted from images allowed the half-time of the antibody at the tumour site to be calculated, and a value of 7.7 h was obtained.Fluorescence was also apparent in the kidneys, indicating clearance of the NovoMab-G2-scFv through the kidneys. Again, fluorescence intensity decreased with time, reaching a minimum 72 h post-injection. Imaging of isolated organs (ex vivo) confirmed the presence of the antibody–dye complex in the tumours, kidneys and liver. No fluorescence was observed in the brain, heart, lungs or spleen, suggesting that these organs do not accumulate the NovoMab-G2-scFv–dye complex.     

Isothermal titration calorimetric and spectroscopic studies on (alcohol + salt) induced partially folded state of α-lactalbumin and its binding with 8-anilino-1-naphthalenesulfonic acid

Interaction of 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoroisopropanol (HFIP) and isopropanol in the presence of equimolar quantities of guanidine thiocyanate (GndSCN) with bovine α-lactalbumin (α-LA) has been investigated by using a combination of isothermal titration calorimetry, circular dichroism, fluorescence, and ultra-violet spectroscopies at in 20 · 10^?3 mol · dm^?3 phosphate buffer pH 7.0. All the thermal unfolding transitions, in the presence of both the (alcohol + salt) mixtures were found to be reversible as judged by the same values of absorbance observed at different temperatures during cooling after the completion of thermal unfolding. In the presence of the 0.25 mol · dm^?3 (HFIP + GndSCN) equimolar mixture and 0.85 mol · dm^?3 (isopropanol + GndSCN) equimolar mixture, α-lactalbumin was observed to be in the partially folded state with significant loss of native tertiary structure. Intrinsic fluorescence results, acrylamide and potassium iodide quenching, 8-anilino-1-naphthalenesulfonic acid (ANS) binding, and energy transfer results also corroborate the presence of partially folded states of α-lactalbumin. Apart from the generation of the partially folded states, it was also observed that destabilizing action of GndSCN is reduced in the presence of isopropanol compared to that in HFIP. Isothermal titration calorimetry has been used to characterize the energetics of ANS binding to the partially folded states of the protein. ITC results indicate that ANS binds to these partially folded states at pH 7.0 due to the presence of two sequentially binding sites on the protein under the solvent conditions employed. For example, ANS binds to the 0.25 mol · dm^?3 (HFIP + GndSCN) induced partially folded state with affinity constants K₁ = (858 ± 220), K₂ = (1.12 ± 0.25) · 10³; enthalpies of binding ΔH₁ = (4.4 ± 1.0) kJ · mol^?1, ΔH₂ = (2.1 ± 0.2) kJ · mol^?1; and entropies of binding ΔS₁ = 70 J · K^?1 · mol^?1 and ΔS₂ = 65 J · K^?1 · mol^?1, respectively at these two sequential binding sites. In light of the fluorescence results, possible binding sites where ANS can bind to the protein have also been suggested.     

X-ray emission from LiTaO3 induced by thermal changes and structure analysis

X-ray emission from LiTaO₃ induced by the thermal changes from about 300–480 K has been investigated in a vacuum system. The single-crystal X-ray structure analysis of LiTaO₃ was carried out at 269, 286, 303, 319, 337, 358, 381, 413, and 436 K, respectively, far below the phase transition (∼930 K). The relationship between the observed X-ray emission and the pyroelectric coefficient of LiTaO₃ is discussed.     

Heat capacity of hafnia at low temperature

The low temperature (2 to 300) K heat capacity of monoclinic hafnia (HfO₂) was measured using the heat capacity option of a Quantum Design Physical Property Measurement System (PPMS). The thermodynamic functions in this temperature range were derived by curve fitting. The standard entropy and enthalpy of hafnia at T = 298.15 K was calculated to be 56.15 ± 0.57 J · mol^?1 · K^?1 and 9.34 ± 0.09 kJ · mol^?1, respectively. The results are in fairly good agreement with old data, which only covered temperatures from (50 to 298) K. Hafnia has a higher heat capacity than zirconia at all temperatures from (2 to 300) K.     

Semivolatile and volatile compounds from the pyrolysis and combustion of polyvinyl chloride

Emissions evolved from the pyrolysis and combustion of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) were studied at four different temperatures (500, 700, 850 and 1000 °C) in a horizontal laboratory tubular quartz reactor in order to analyse the influence of both temperature and reaction atmosphere on the final products from thermal and oxidative reactions. It was observed that the CO₂/CO ratio increased with temperature. Methane was the only light hydrocarbon whose yield increased with temperature up to 1000 °C. Benzene was rather stable at high temperatures, but in general, combustion at temperatures above 500 °C was enough to destroy light hydrocarbons. Semivolatile hydrocarbons were collected in XAD-2 resin and more than 160 compounds were detected. Trends on polyaromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) yields showed that most had a maximum at 850 °C in pyrolysis, but naphthalene at 700 °C. Formation of chlorinated aromatics was detected. A detailed analysis of all isomers of chlorobenzenes and chlorophenols was performed. Both of them reached higher total yields in combustion runs, the first ones having a maximum at 700 °C and the latter at 500 °C. Pyrolysis and combustion runs at 850 °C were conducted to study the formation of polychlorodibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and polychlorodibenzofurans (PCDFs). There was more than 20-fold increase in total yields from pyrolysis to combustion, and PCDF yields represented in each case about 10 times PCDD yields.     

Adsorption of the diazo dye Direct Red 23 onto a zinc oxide surface: A spectroscopic study

The adsorption of the diazo dye Direct Red 23 onto a zinc oxide surface at 30 °C in the dark was investigated. The color reduction was monitored by spectrophotometry at 503 nm. The FTIR and Raman spectra of the Direct Red 23 adsorption as a function of ZnO concentration were registered. From the PM3 semi-empirical calculations of the atomic charge density and dipole moment of the Direct Red 23 molecule, it was demonstrated that the azo dye molecule may be adsorbed onto the ZnO surface through molecule geometry modifications, enhancing the interfacial area causing a variation in the bonding frequencies.     

An improved technique for accurate heat capacity measurements on powdered samples using a commercial relaxation calorimeter

We have modified our earlier technique for accurate PPMS heat capacity measurements on powdered samples by means of applying Wakefield grease or small copper strips in the sample preparation instead of using Apiezon N high-vacuum grease. For the Wakefield grease measurements, we put a small amount of Wakefield thermal compound in a copper cup instead of potting with Apiezon N, and the accuracy of measurements on powdered benzoic acid was determined to be ±1% and ±4% in the temperature ranges of 10 K < T < 280 K and 280 K < T < 300 K, respectively. The Wakefield grease was found to improve the accuracy somewhat but overall there was no noticeable improvement in the “grease region” above T = 220 K. To overcome the known shortcomings of using Apiezon N grease above 220 K, we have replaced the Apiezon N grease with small copper strips in the sample preparation to aid thermal conductivity, which results in a less time-intensive two-step technique for the PPMS heat capacity measurement but with an accuracy, based on measurements of benzoic acid, that is ±1% from T = (10 to 300) K and, more importantly, the elimination of the “grease problem”. As an additional test of the new technique, the heat capacity of powdered bulk rutile has been measured twice within the temperature range from (2 to 300) K using the PPMS, and its standard entropy at T = 298.15 K was calculated to be (50.39 ± 0.50) and (50.31 ± 0.50) J · K^?1 · mol^?1, which deviates 0.08% and ?0.08% from the measurement results of our low-temperature adiabatic and semi-adiabatic calorimeters, respectively. We recommend that this technique become the standard for accurate heat capacity measurements on insulating powdered samples using a PPMS system and the corresponding thermodynamic calculations.     

Multi-technique approach on the effect of surfactant concentrations on the thermal unfolding of rabbit serum albumin: Formation and solubilization of the protein aggregates

Effect of cationic surfactant, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) addition on the thermal denaturation of rabbit serum albumin (RSA) has been studied by employing small-angle neutron scattering (SANS), circular dichroism (CD), intrinsic fluorescence and ultra violet (UV) spectroscopy. The studies were performed at three different temperatures viz., 30, 50 and 70 °C and at two different concentrations of CTAB: the low concentration of CTAB used was 1 mM and the higher concentration was 80 mM (for SANS) and 20 mM (for CD, fluorescence and UV). A collective effect of high temperature and low concentration of CTAB led to the protein aggregation followed by solubilization of these aggregates at higher concentration of surfactant. At 1 mM CTAB and 30 °C, the protein–surfactant complex has a prolate ellipsoidal shape with semi-major axis of 88.9 Å and semi-minor axis of 19.6 Å which are slightly greater than the values of the native RSA. At 50 °C, the size of the semi-major axis increases while at 70 °C an increase in the size of both axes was found. The thermal outcome at higher concentration of CTAB (80 mM) was rather different. Higher concentration of CTAB unfolds the protein by the formation of micelle-like aggregates along the polypeptide chains of the protein and the complex was stabilized at higher temperatures, which was not found with lower concentration of CTAB. The CD results were found to be consistent with the SANS results, i.e., decrease in α-helicity of RSA was more when less amount of surfactant was present as compared to the system with higher surfactant concentration. In a similar fashion, results of relative fluorescence intensity (RFI) reveal that increase in temperature causes decrease in λ_max of native RSA as well as RSA + 1 mM CTAB, whereas the λ_max remains unchanged for RSA + 20 mM CTAB systems. That means the structure remains compact in presence of 20 mM CTAB while the structure becomes loose when low or zero amount of surfactant was present. The UV results indicate that the protein aggregation takes place in presence of low amount of CTAB and these aggregates become soluble at high concentration of CTAB.     

Conformational properties of the bisphenol-A polycarbonate using the RMMC method

The conformational properties of the bisphenol-A polycarbonate (PC) were studied using the rotational-isomeric-state metropolis Monte Carlo (RMMC) simulations adopting a polymer consistent forcefield (pcff). The conformations of a single PC chain were generated at theta condition in a wide range of molar mass. When the maximum bond number for non-bonded interactions is set to 5, the conformation corresponds to the unperturbed state. The probability that the dihedral bond pairs of diphenyl propane (DPP) groups exist at two minima of energy where the bond angles are (50.5, 50.5) and (−49.5, 129.5) is 3.4×10⁻⁴ at 300 K. The probability of the trans–trans form of diphenyl carbonate (DPC) groups is 6.3×10⁻⁴ at 300 K, and is reduced to 2.1×10⁻⁴ as temperature increases to 600 K. The limiting unperturbed dimension in terms of mean-square end-to-end distance over molar mass (〈r²〉/M) is 1.01 Å² mol/g. From intrinsic viscosity calculated with the radius of gyration (S), it was found that the gyration or the conformation of the PC chain at 300 K is closer to that of dilute solutions in chloroform at 293 K or in p-dioxane at 303 K than in tetrahydrofuran (THF) solution at 297 K. In future studies, the conformation obtained from the RMMC method here will be used as an initial structure to perform the molecular dynamics simulation in order to investigate interfacial properties of the PC bulk.     

Dielectric relaxation studies in transition metal ions doped tellurite glasses

Vanadotellurite and vanado-cobalt tellurite glasses were investigated for dielectric properties in the frequency range 50 Hz to 5 MHz and temperature range 300–500 K. Hunt's model has been invoked to analyze the data and the results indicated that the relaxation process has a local character and can be described by hops between each pair of sites. Activation energies for dielectric loss process were determined and they were in close agreement with dc activation energies. Barton, Nakijama and Namikawa's (BNN) linear relation between ac and dc conductivities has been verified in both the glass systems.     

Thermal properties of [Cr(NH3)6](BF4)3 studied by adiabatic and relaxation calorimetry

Four (solid–solid) phase transitions were detected in the temperature range of (9 to 300) K in polycrystalline [Cr(NH₃)₆](BF₄)₃ at T_C1 = 240.7 K, T_C2 = 108.0 K, T_C3 = 91.9 K, and T_C4 = 61.3 K by adiabatic calorimetry. The measurements by relaxation calorimetry were followed on lowering temperature from 20 K down to 0.35 K under six different external magnetic field values (9, 7, 5, 3, 1 and 0) T. For non-zero values of applied magnetic field well-defined Schottky anomaly appears. Magnetic heat capacity was calculated assuming the zero-field splitting for the decoupled Cr(III) ions. There is no discrepancy between the observed and calculated values. Isothermal magnetization curve recorded up to 5 T was measured at temperature of 1.8 K.